I hate hand sewing. That is my confession. I mean I HATE hand sewing. If my hubby loses a button he 'jokes' that he will just kiss the shirt goodbye. Well it is SORT OF a joke. He at least has to get used to not wearing that shirt for a VERY LONG TIME. It takes me a long time to feel really guilty about not sewing on a button and returning the shirt to him. I finally do it. Oh and scouting...gimme a break. It is bad enough you have to cart your kids all over the place to meetings, go to meetings yourself, take hikes you don't want to take and carve and paint pinewood cars but then they expect you to sew the dern patches on their shirts!!! I think that should be the FIRST thing scouts learn - sewing on patches. By yourself. (I usually did them by machine anyway).
The few quilts that I have made have been the turn method (does that make sense?). So no binding but ya know the opening after you turn the quilt?? Well let's just say I haven't made a quilt like that since my mother passed away. She was always great with a needle and thread and would hand sew the opening closed for me. Go ahead, roll your eyes. I think one quilt was closed by my mother in law that was visiting. She is still alive but lives too far away and is almost blind. No help there anymore.
So I am moving on to quilts that require binding. This first one I am taking to the longarm quilter on Friday. They are also going to attach the binding. At this point I think I am going to have them handsew the binding on the backside. My thought was this; my daughter is supposed to take this quilt with her to college in September. If I don't have them do it now, will it be done by the time she leaves?? Unlikely. I think they really need to be done by hand, don't they? How frustrating to try to do it by machine to have the binding shift just a smidge and you miss catching it. Then what?
I took home economics from the 7th grade all the way through the 12th grade. I loved it. I am sure I must have had to hand sew in that time. Did I have mono and miss a month of class? I don't know where this aversion came from. I don't care for embroidery either. Counted cross stitch is okay. Stamped cross stitch is okay. They both show me exactly where to put the needle. I have even considered getting a Yo Yo maker since they show you exactly where to put the needle. The thought of doing them all on my own was mind boggling and never appealed to me.
I have looked online some for binding directions. I have looked in quilting magazines. The directions that they give are for sewing the binding on the front side, with that cool little trick at each corner. I have yet to try that since I was in no way prepared to do anything with it once it was turned to the back. The detailed directions stop there. Everything just goes on to say stitch the binding on the back side. Uhhhhhhhh, thanks so much!! THAT is exactly where I need help! With pictures would be even better! Why is it assumed that everyone knows how to do that next step? Tell me I am not the only person out there that does not know how to sew the binding to the back of the quilt. Lie if you have to.
Any chance my new machine has an attachment for attaching the binding with a blind stitch so that it will look handsewn??? I never could figure out the blind hem stitch on the machine I have now. They have the fabric folded about 4 different ways and then put it under this special foot and I am saying "HUH???"
Any suggestions? Any offers to handstitch my bindings? My hubby would love it if you would sew some buttons on too. :D
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i knew alot about sewing before attempting my first quilt. but i did learn so much when i started taking classes at my LQS. i go to a once-a-month class to make a quilt that will be done in a year. well i go to 3. i recommend those. they are designed to teach new skills or piecing methods. & you can ask questions all the time. i think quilters eventually learn to love the quiet time they receive when you have to slow down to sew on the binding. if it is a gift it may be the last time you have to hold your quilt in your own hands.
ReplyDeleteI love to hand sew , I can sympathize with you though! Let the old mind set go and put on the new one; quiet music or an audio book and before you are too many chapters into it, you will be done! Painlessly and pridefully you will have done it! Give it a try!
ReplyDeleteI must say that I am opposite. I mean, I machine sew everything I can. However, I prefer to hand sew my binding down in the back. I enjoy this part of the quilt making. I get to sit in the same room as my family (I do not watch TV), and the quilt is draped over me while I tack the binding down. You use a blindstitch or a ladder stitch to sew it down. I looked for a good pictorial for you, but no luck. It is not hard. If you have ever hand appliquéd, then you use that stitch. The stitches are just spaced a little farther apart. Hope this helps. I will keep looking for some good pictures or tutorials on this part of binding. I would make one but my camera does not do that type of photo well.
ReplyDeleteThat is so funnny. I emailed Des about binding this past weekend. I just couldn't believe that I had to handsew the WHOLE thing... She said yes I do. Des if you're reading, sounds like a good blog post! Let us know how it turns out. :)
ReplyDeleteOkay, you need a tiny, teeny chill pill. Then you get your favorite Jane Austen movie and you sit on the couch and relax with your little needle and thread and sew away. (put the phone close by so you don't have to get up. Holler to anyone who knocks to 'come on in') My little tutorial on the ladder stitch (check under the goodie bag on the left) will show you how to hide your stitch. Exact same principal as when you are closing up an open space. Binding a quilt is one of my most favorite things. And if you can sit at a sewing machine and piece a quilt you can certainly sit on the couch and eat some chocolate while binding. If you have the right movie, you'll love it!! p.s. I don't do buttons either. My son is still walking around without a top button on his church shirt. I think it's time he learns that skill.
ReplyDeletegoodie bag is on the RIGHT hand side of blog. :)
ReplyDeleteI don't know how to sew the binding to the back of the quilt...and I'm not lying!
ReplyDeleteCJ, sewing the binding down by hand was never my favorite part of the quilting process, however I really like the way it looks, so I did it. Notice: "did" it. Being that I am a woman of a "certain age" and have budding arthritis in my thumbs, I have decided to save my thumbs for my more favorite tasks. I now sew my bindings on by machine. I wrap the binding around to the back with a generous amount of coverage over the seam line (where it was sewn on in the front) and then **Pin Carefully** with pins as close together as needed to keep that edge covering the seam line. I use lots of pins. On the front,using my zipper foot (which allows me to get snuggly against the folded edge of the binding)I stitch in the ditch. If your machine allows you to move your needle, move it close to that fold. Sew slowly. I repeat, sew slowly. And carefully over the pins. Sewing it on this way takes awhile, but it is faster than by hand. A generous overlap on the back side and sewing snugly against the binding on the top side will give you a neatly sewn back and a nearly hidden ditch seam on top.
ReplyDeleteSome people sew the binding on the back and flip it over to the front and top stitch it down. That's fine, but I like the results of my method better.
If you have questions, feel free to email me.
CJ... your hubby is in luck. Bernina makes this fabulous button foot, #18 (which I believe is included with your 440) and a special stitch, so all you do is put the button on top the shirt, the foot holds the button in place, and the machine sews it down. Totally awesome!
ReplyDeleteMachine sewing bindings... do a search on YouTube for "Binding the Angel" by Sharon Schambers. Outstanding method!
Ricky Tim's "Finale" DVD details his machine sewn binding as well.